Western Alamance grad picked for NCAA golf regional

UNC Wilmington women’s golfer Lori Beth Adams, a junior out of Western Alamance, has received a bid for a spot as an individual entry into the NCAA Central Regional this week in Norman, Okla.

The competition will take place Thursday through Saturday at the Jimmy Austin Golf Club at the University of Oklahoma and is one of three 54-hole tournaments that will feature 24 teams and six individual entries.

The top eight teams plus two individuals not part of an advancing team from each of the three regional sites will qualify for the NCAA championships, scheduled to be played May 21-24 at the University of Georgia Golf Course in Athens, Ga.

“I am really excited for Lori Beth as she is ranked 74th in the country and has played very consistently throughout the year,” UNCW coach Cindy Ho said. “It’s a great achievement to qualify for an NCAA championship. Obviously, our goal is to qualify as a team, but our program has always had outstanding golfers and with our strength of schedule, it provides the opportunity for a player to have a great year and be rewarded for their performance.”

Adams posted a team-low 74.32 stroke average in 11 events during the 2012-13 season. She posted five top-five finishes and eight top-10 results on her way to earning Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Week honors six times. She place second in the CAA championships.

“I would happily exchange it for a team invitation, but I am really excited to get an individual invitation,” Adams said. “I am ready to play and see what happens.”

Adams is the fourth player in the UNCW program’s history to be rewarded with an individual entry to an NCAA regional as Sofia Hagsund (2010), Michelle Jarman (2006) and Nicole Flood (1990) were also selected.

Ho said, “(Adams) has put herself in contention to win a number of times this season and I know she has the ability to have a strong regional performance to earn a berth into the NCAA championships.”

UNC Greensboro’s Fanny Cnops also received an individual bid to the regional. There will be other North Carolina college players at the site.

Duke received its 21st consecutive bid to participate in an NCAA regional and the Blue Devils are seeded No. 1 in the Central Region. Eighth-seeded North Carolina State, 12th-seeded Campbell and 14th-seeded Wake Forest also are in the field. N.C. State’s position ties for the best seed in school history for the women’s regional.

Elsewhere, the top three seeds in the East Regional are Alabama, Arkansas and UCLA, while the top teams in the West Regional are Southern California, Arizona and Vanderbilt.

North Carolina is in the fourth seed in the East Regional, which will be contested at the Auburn University Club in Auburn, Ala. Virginia is the No. 5 seed in that bracket, while East Carolina is seeded No. 17.